Haaretz Service: Shin Bet: No chance for peace while Hamas rules Gaza
Talkback
Title:#2 Here, let me have a go, Peter Williams
Name:Johnboy
City: SydneyState: Australia
PW: "So I take it Mark that you don`t believe Hamas is an obstacle to peace?"

No. They can be sidelined by accepting their offer of a 10 year truce.

PW: "You don`t think their violence is an issue?"

No. That is an issue only while Israel insists that the only answer to Hamas-violence is IDF-violence.

Accept the 10 year truce, and that issue goes away for 10 years.

PW: "charter to reclaim Israel?"

The Likud policy platform says that there will be no Palestinian state.

Yet nobody considers that policy platform a nonstarter - just a non-event.

PW:"None of these things will get in the way of peace?"

They all Get In Israel`s Way, yeah, Peter.

Sure. They do.

But Israel has a way around all of them, and simply refuses to take it.

Ergo, Israel prefers a world where Hamas is in its way over a world where Hamas are sidelined.

That doesn`t seem very sensible to me, but no doubt you have no doubts, Peter.....